Before the Sun Begins to Rise
by Uchuuwrites
Summary: The only thing that stands between Jasper and her chance at happiness is the fact that the woman she falls in love with happens to be a vampire.
1. Chapter 1

When Jasper became the manager of a bar, it was not the highest priority on things she wanted to do with her life but the pay was why she stayed. The hours were late into the night, and in the afternoon, she had some online classes she was finishing up to get her master's degree but It worked for her. She became a night owl in this process, heading to work around six at night and coming home after three or even four in the morning. The only thing that bothered her about this night time schedule was the weird people roaming the streets at night. Normally the things she sees at night are crimes; people out after the towns curfew, she's witnessed muggings and has almost been mugged herself—but track, volleyball and wrestling have given her quite an ability to defend herself—but some of the strangest would be the man in the grape costume that runs around the streets after bars begin to close and the woman she sees walking around the town from sundown until she leaves to head home from work.

This specific woman isn't strange herself but it's her actions that surprise people. She doesn't dress in odd clothing and never does anything that warrants suspicion but Jasper is rather intrigued by her. She's quite thin, and her skin is as pale as porcelain without any makeup to make it so; even her eyes are this cloudy blue that are incredibly entrancing. Jasper has run into the woman once or twice when she was running late for work and just being up close to her distracts her more than anything. She's incredibly gorgeous and Jasper becomes embarrassed while thinking about it. Even her voice is so distinct that Jasper can hear it in her head when she watches the woman walk by her bar. She was nothing like the older man in the grape costume, and Jasper couldn't help but develop a slight crush on this woman.

She knows absolutely nothing about her and when she questions the staff and some of the regular patrons of the bar they also don't anything about her. Some of them can recount times they've watched her pace the streets or even the rooftop of the building but many of them do not remember her at all. Jasper finds it all so strange because she cannot find a single piece of information about her online and the less she knows, the more she needs to know. But, the reasons were selfish and for all she knew the woman could be dangerous or just prefers to be outside at night.

Jasper tries not to think too much about it because she has a job to do. It's incredibly boring and she misses the hands-on experience from serving drinks but as a manager she has do paperwork. It's normally for new hires and shipment orders, sometimes she has write up incident reports and employee complains but it does pass the time much quicker than making drinks once did. She often sits at the bar and does her work to keep an eye on things but it began to snow a few hours ago and she's rather distracted by it, keeping an eye on the outside by sitting in a corner booth by a window. The weather didn't call for snow but there had been storm warnings all throughout the east coast for weeks about rain, wind, and thunder storms for weeks. This snow just happened to be a sudden surprise for all of them and Jasper was worried about her employees who lived outside of the city getting home.

The bar empties out quickly when the weather becomes worse and Jasper decides to close the bar down early, allowing everyone to clean up quickly and leave. She never wants to put her employees at any risk on the way home as much as she wants to be able to make money because their safety is more important than putting them in harm's way. But because she lets everyone go home, she's the one who is often stuck behind to finish cleaning up and closing the store for the night. She does often have help from a supervisor who lives a few minutes of a walk away and Jasper appreciates the help because she has registers to count, some closing paperwork to finish, and has to double check that everything has been properly cleaned and put away for the night. It takes almost for the two of them to get everything finished but Jasper stays behind longer while this woman goes home for the night.

When Jasper is alone in the bar she locks up the front door, turns off the lights of the open sign, and shuts all of the shades from the windows. Occasionally she'll open a bottle of wine in her office and drink it while she finishes work but she also tends to fall asleep in her chair and not in the comfort of her bed at home. It's close to four in the morning when she does manage to get everything finished on her part, but the last thing she needs to do is make sure there was no trash on the roof before she does leave. The main issue with the bar layout was that there was a rooftop that used to be a patio when the bar was a restaurant ten years ago. The rooftop did not exist for customers to hang out on there but many found their way up to the roof and the door has been broken several times. Jasper never had the issue after officially changing the locks herself but she often found beer bottles or cigarettes still up there and she often assumed it was another manager or maybe the owner who hung up there. Either way she should make sure it's clean and take out the trash so she heads up and embraces the sudden chill from the snow blowing inside of the hallway she comes from. Someone had opened the door and left it open which she will find out who had done and she will hurt them.

She walks out onto the roof, surprised to see there were no empty bottles lying around like normal. It was just a clean white sheet of snow that had covered the roof with her footprints trapped into it. She likes the scenery, it's rather quiet because of how early it had been but the cold weather and the snow just made it gorgeous. She shivers, deciding to go back inside because there's nothing out here she needs to concern herself with. She turns around and takes a step but immediately stumbles back when she bumps into someone.

"What the fuck are you doing up here?" She asks angrily, regaining her balance and straightening her body to stand up straight. She looks at the person she has run into before realizing it was the woman who often walked the streets at nice. She was only wearing a pair of leggings and a thin dress with no socks or shoes on which concerned Jasper immediately. "You must be freezing, come on inside."

That was her first mistake.

Jasper locks the roof door and turns the light switch on in the hallway before ushering the woman down to the bar. When she reaches the final step, she notices the woman looking around the bar, wincing at the bright lights by placing her hand against her forehead to cover her eyes. She looks back outside for just a moment and watches the snow fall before turning to Jasper as if she wants something. Jasper thinks that she may need a blanket or coat, or maybe she just needs to call for a way home. Or maybe she wants to stay at the bar until the weather dies down which is what Jasper had been planning on doing at this point.

"Do you want some tea? Maybe a blanket?" She takes a second look at this woman because it is the first time seeing her up close. She was gorgeous in such a unique way and it had something to do with how distracting her eyes were.

The woman hums, "if that would make you feel better I suppose you can get a blanket for me but I mustn't be long."

Jasper heads back to her office, rummages around for one of her many blankets. She keeps them for the main reason that some nights she works so late that she's too tired to drive and sleeps on the couch in the office. She often will wake up to phone calls from her roommate when she does not come home or another manager who is beginning to prepare for the night. By the end of her shifts at night, the last thing she wants to do is stay later than she's scheduled to but sometimes going home and listening to her roommates complains isn't worth the trip and she's more than willing to find out more about this strange woman.

Jasper leaves her office when she finally finds the blanket and comes out to the bar to give it to the woman. She's moved from walking around the bar and examining items to sitting on a stool with her bare feet pressed against the small bar under the chair. "What were you doing on the roof?" She takes a seat next to her.

She shrugs as she wraps herself in the blanket even though she knows it will do very little to warm her. She rests her arms against the table top and sighs, "it's not very important so I doubt you'd be interested."

"Did you want something to eat or drink?"

"I don't do much of either but I appreciate the offer." She was picking at the skin around her fingernails. "I really must be heading home, it's almost daylight you know."

"I could drive you home if you don't live far. But you could also stay here for the night if you really need to."

"I prefer walking."

"You're not wearing any shoes."

"Oh my, I guess I forgot to put them on." She chuckles, turning to Jasper. "You're awfully nice to a stranger like me."

"I can't leave you stranded up there. Besides, it's under twenty degrees and it's snowing."

"Is it? I guess I hadn't noticed."

Jasper doesn't understand this woman's odd behavior. It wasn't just her appearance that was so striking but the way she spoke and dressed as almost as if she did not belong in this time at all. "Where do you live?" She asks, wanting to get an idea if taking her home was plausible in this weather.

"Right down by the beach."

"Is there anyone who can come and pick you up?"

"No, I live alone. Well, I used to have a roommate but that was a long time ago." She chuckles again and Jasper swallows hard in response. "But I can walk. I prefer to not be outside after sunrise so it's much easier if I walk."

"I can drive you home. It's not safe outside in this weather."

"Listen, I do appreciate your hospitality but-"

"I'm not going to take no for an answer, just give me a few minutes to double check the place and lock up."

The woman turns, staring at the glass bottles behind the counter and says nothing more.

Jasper heads to the kitchen, focusing on putting away some pots and pans back into their proper place before turning the oven and stoves off. She locks the back door before heading back to her office upstairs. She just grabs her coat, keys and bag before locking the door and walking down to the bar again. The woman has moved from the stool to the window, staring outside as if she's entranced by the snow. Jasper's not sure if she should be concerned and possibly call the cops or continue with taking her home. She decides on the latter and she's not sure why. Something inside of her wants to know more about this woman.

She ignores the qualms about her, and unlocks the front door allowing this woman to leave before she follows her out of the building.

Jasper realizes on the drive to this woman's house that they do not live far apart and she passes her own street on the way down to the boardwalk. Their houses are only ten minutes apart but Jasper is not fortunate enough to live seconds from the beach and she realizes she has never seen the beach in this sort of weather before. The darkness of the skies even so early in the morning, the deep color of the ocean and the crashing of the waves against the shore banks were so violently beautiful that she regrets passing up the opportunity to live here. There were perks of living in a town but Jasper can't seem to think of anything but this woman sitting in her car with her.

Jasper knows what she is doing is dangerous; no one in their right mind would take a stranger home and enter inside but her desire to know more about this mysterious woman is stronger than her sanity. Everything she currently knows about this woman is based on the sole fact that she walks the streets from sundown until sunrise. Jasper often sees her in thin garb and does not understand what her purpose for being outside especially in this frigid weather is. If Jasper believed in the supernatural, she would make jokes about how this woman wasn't human but then Jasper knows the possibility of medical conditions. Some conditions prevent others from feeling pain and it could be the reason she's currently barefoot, but then some conditions can create an eye or skin sensitivity to sunlight or even an allergy. Jasper could write a list due to her minor in psychology and her intensive observations of the woman.

She doesn't like to make assumptions about people but there's something about this woman that pulls her closer and closer to doing so. Maybe it's the fact her house is draped in darkness and there is no heat. She's positive it's colder inside than it is outside and shivers intensely when she walks inside. Inside? She doesn't even remember getting out of her car or this stranger inviting her inside. Everything is much blurrier when she tries to piece it all together.

Jasper's teeth are chattering as she speaks, "your house is fucking cold."

"How could I be so silly? Humans need heat."

"Humans?" Jasper asks as she watches the woman move from the hallway into the living room. She grabs a box of matches and lights one before tossing it into the pile of wood in the bronze fireplace. It's not just cold in this house but also extremely dark even with the hint of sun rising behind the trees. The fire illuminates the room, bringing to life the dark shelves filled with books, the pictures hanging off the walls, and the light even discovers the strange floral pattern on the dark turquoise couch. It seems rather normal inside but this person herself was still so strange.

"I suppose it's not important. However, I can brew some tea if that's what you require."

"No, it's fine. I wasn't planning on staying very long." She wraps her arms around herself, rubbing her hand up and down her arm to generate some sort of heat over her sweater. "What's your name anyway?"

"I would tell you but I don't find that information to be very useful. I would love to know your interests." She grabs the fire iron sitting in a spot on the table and begins to push at the wood. "It seems I am one of them."

Jasper purses her lips, feeling rather embarrassed how obvious her interests had been. She decides to breathe, calming herself down and the fire helps warm her up, too. "I like sports."

"Playing or watching?"

"Playing. I was on the soccer team for a while, volleyball and track, too.

"Ah, you love the thrill of the chase then." She smiles and Jasper can feel herself blushing. "That's always a positive characteristic."

"What about you?"

"Hm? What about me?"

"Sports?"

"Ballet and fencing…if you consider them to be sports. But it was a very long time ago." She puts out the fire after another minute passes by, just enough to keep the place warm for her guest. "You should leave before the snow gets worse." She walks to the front door and Jasper follows her slowly. "I take it I'll see you again."

Jasper stops when the woman opens the door and they're both met with the cold wind but only Jasper shivers. She does not like the cold and living on the east coast was the worst decision she has ever made in her entire life. She misses the warmth her hometown consistently had and the ocean where she was always able to surf or swim. "I have to ask...And I know it might be personal but why do you walk the streets at night?"

"I walk to visit the graveyard in the city to visit someone."

"Like someone who works at the graveyard or an actual gravestone?"

"Both. There is more to it, I promise there is, but that's all the information you will receive from me today. Goodbye for now" The woman bows to Jasper as she leaves the house, shutting the door behind her.

One she's inside of the house by herself, she sighs as she locks the door and heads up to her bedroom. She loves the company but it becomes so hard for her to be around people, including a woman like Jasper. She was rather lovely but she she does not want to think about these things now. The sun was beginning to rise and Pearl closes her black-out curtains so she can finally rest.


	2. Chapter 2

Her name was Pearl.

Well, that's what Jasper overheard while she was getting out of her car for her shift one night. It was a week after the snow storm and she had seen Pearl twice from the inside of her bar while she would roam the streets. The difference now and between every past time was that a small boy was walking along side her. Jasper comes up to them, offers to buy them dinner so they didn't have to spend time out in the cold. At first Pearl refuses the offer because she claims it is no place for a child of his age but the boy—he introduces himself as Steven—insists they go inside because the bus wouldn't be there for another hour.

Pearl is somehow easily defeated by the boys' words and his puppy dog eyes, and it's the reason why she's sitting in the corner booth with Steven sitting by the window next to her. Jasper is opposite of them because she wants to know more about Pearl still, but she's also in the middle of doing some paperwork. The only thing she can think of is the conversation she had with her roommate—her twin sister—after telling her the story of what happened last week. Her sister knows about Pearl because she has come by the bar before and watched her walk the street back and forth but didn't believe she was dangerous. Overall, her sister was surprised Jasper's life didn't turn into a plot from a porno.

Jasper watches Pearl trying to get Steven to eat the vegetables on his plate and Pearl notices Jasper staring. "What? He's a growing boy he needs to eat healthy!"

"You're embarrassing me." He whispers as his cheeks turn red and Pearl huffs.

"Alright, but then I suppose you can't get dessert."

Steven perks up instantly and grabs his fork to eat them.

"You make a great mom." Jasper comments and she watches Pearl's eyes go wide.

"What?" She nearly knocks over the wine cup in front of her. "I'm no mother; especially not Steven's mother."

"Yeah! Pearl's like a mom but so is Garnet."

"Amethyst, too."

He nods.

"And who are all these people?" Jasper asks, grabbing her cup to take a drink before setting it back down.

"Friends of his mother."

"You don't talk about yourself much, do you?" It's something that Jasper noticed immediately about her the moment she refused to give her name. It is also to do with the way she answers the questions Jasper asks; it's as if she is trying to keep any truth about herself from others.

"Nah, she's always been like that. I've known her forever and I didn't know her favorite color until last week!" Steven announces. "It's blue!"

"Oh hush, you know plenty things about me, but blue is not my favorite color" She takes a sip from her glass and sets it back down, noticing how Steven has a surprised look on his face about the color ordeal. "I'm sorry, the lights are giving me such a migraine I really think we should take our leave." She apologizes to Steven who nods again at her and Pearl stands up to give Steven room to get out of the corner of the seat. He grabs his jacket and puts it on, Pearl zippering it for him and pulling up the hood.

"Let me walk you guys to the bus stop." Jasper says, following them to the door.

Pearl doesn't protest and shoves her hands into her pockets as she begins to walk outside and quickly down the street.

"So…What is your favorite color?" Steven asks, walking next to Jasper.

"Orange."

"See, I really like red but sometimes I really like pink or blue!"

"My sister's favorite color is also orange. When we were kids my mom had to buy two of everything in orange and she got so sick of the color."

"Well, have you tried liking a different color?" Steven asks as he catches up to Pearl who is at the end of the street by a bench. There's still too much snow on it to sit down so they stand.

"No, why?"

Steven shrugs.

"What is your favorite color?" Jasper turns to Pearl whose eyes widen at the question.

"I don't…know?" She looks down the street as if the bus was going to come and save her from the question. "I like light colors."

"Wait! Is your favorite color light blue?"

Pearl laughs and Jasper stares at her. The laugh was so unexpected, and Jasper can't help but fall in love with the sound. "No. I mean like pastel shades like pastel pinks and peaches."

"Oh right! You like those trees with those pink flowers."

"And what are they called?"

"Uhm…" Steven thinks about it before shrugging his shoulders.

"Cherry blossoms, right?"

Pearl turns to Jasper, "yes. But pink flowers are such a vague description, how did you guess?"

"The floral pattern in your living room."

She chuckles, "of course. How could I have forgotten?"

"What?! Jasper gets to hang out with you at your house and I don't?" Steven pouts.

"No, Steven. She just took me home one night…" She sighs and looks down the road again when she hears the bus coming down the road. "We need to be leaving now. I must get Steven home before it is too late."

Jasper watches them leave, waves back to Steven who seems far too excited to be riding on a bus. She heads back to the bar afterwards, continuing with her work for the evening. She cannot help but think about Pearl the entire time because now she was learning things about this mysterious woman that she had been questioning for weeks. She still wants to know why she walks the streets at night and it is something she feels as if she may never understand about her. She focuses on her work because she needs to get home and work on some assignments that are of the upmost importance to her, and by luck she manages to get home before ten.

Jasper used to have a roommate, but it was a few years ago while she was still living on campus. Things had changed since then and the most important was that she had obtained her bachelors in psychology and was months from finishing her masters. Since then she had gotten a better paying job—albeit it at a bar—and the hours were great for her nocturnal tendencies, and in the process, she found an affordable apartment that allowed her to live on her own. The worst thing about her apartment was her next-door neighborhood who was constantly bothering her and had set her stove on fire a dozen of times. She assumes today is another time because a fire truck was leaving the apartment as she came home, and she can smell the burnt wood in the air.

Normally when Jasper comes home she tries to get to her apartment without anyone noticing her. Sometimes there are people outside and sometimes they try to speak to her, and often there are dogs and their owners around the courtyard. Jasper does not know why dogs love her, but they do, and she's allergic. So, the slobbering, hair, and the misunderstanding of personal space forces her to avoid them. But the one thing she can never avoid is her neighbor.

"Jasper!" Her neighbor calls to her and Jasper sighs because she was so close to getting inside her home undetected; she even had the keys in the door.

"Hey Peridot..." She watches the girl come over to her and notices the pieces of soot in her hair. "Did you set your stove on fire again?"

"Well, it was just a miscalculation on my part. I'm sure to get it right next time." She shrugs. "Hey, so what are you—" She starts to ask but Jasper stops her immediately.

"Do you need something? I have things to do."

"Do I need something? Me? Peridot? Do I need something? Pfft, of course not." She shakes her head and returns to her apartment and Jasper turns her key the moment she leaves.

Peridot was easy to handle, sure she annoyed Jasper on many occasion but she was there if Jasper needed someone to talk to and she was also cute which helped. But her manners left something to be desired and the moment Jasper enters her door, sets her bag down and takes her coat off Peridot enters through the front door. "I love how you just come into my apartment without knocking."

"Well, studies show—"

"What do you want?" She shakes her head, throwing her coat on the couch in her living room. Jasper's apartment was always set up a little weird in her opinion, but it was because none of her furniture matched and her kitchen was directly right of the front door. It was mainly because she grew home in a home where the kitchen was in the back of the house and now it was too easy for her to steal snacks when she was hungry at night.

"I just wanted to give this to you." She hands Jasper a package and Jasper sets it down on the coffee table.

"So, you're stealing my mail now?" She chuckles, and Peridot rolls her eyes. "Thanks. Now leave."

"Fine, I'm going. Have a good night."

"If you keep it down I will."

She leaves her apartment and Jasper follows to lock her door. The last thing she wants is someone else barging into her apartment. She waits for a few seconds after she sets her locks because she rarely gets any peace between her job and her classes so sometimes it was just nice to be home away from it all.

She spots the package Peridot put on her table and walks over to it, the return address is marked with her sisters' signature and she picks it up, picking at the tape until it comes apart from the cardboard and opening it. Inside is a small note that says, "Don't open until Christmas," and a package adorned with a bow and gold and red gift wrap. Jasper takes the present into her kitchen and sets it under the undecorated Christmas tree sitting in the corner, on top of her kitchen counter. She tosses the box into the garbage before rummaging in her kitchen for something to eat.

Jasper's studying methods are far from desirable. She has six books all spread out over her bed, a notebook in her lap and her computer playing a random video from a television show she was too busy to catch air. She liked it this way because it worked for her, kept her distracted and if she needed to do research she could easily switch over screens on her laptop. But, what distracts her more is Pearl. Now that she knows a few names she wonders if she would be able to research anything about them. She hums, trying to work but the search would only take a minute. She closes out her videos, brings up a browser and types in a few tidbits of information. Pearl's name, the boy she was with, and anything else she can remember about them. While nothing comes up about them, a separate blog appears with information about strange things happening in Beach City—the city Jasper lived in—such as weird markings appearing in walls, strange creatures supposedly spotted, and several long blog posts by a teenager living not too far from Jasper herself.

She scrolls down until she finds the post that brought Steven's name up. It was just an interview about a…Snake person? Was this a joke? She groans, closing out of it and laying back onto her bed. Jasper cannot seem to help but want to become closer to Pearl because sometime about this woman interests her. There was an allure there that seemed clouded by Jasper's bad judgement and her desire to understand why people act and do what they do. Her walking barefoot in negative five-degree weather was not normal behavior and Jasper was determined to understand why.

Speaking of the weather, it was freezing outside and a million degrees in her bedroom—or so, Jasper believes—so she cleans up her books and her laptop, sets them on her desk and opens one of her bedroom windows before deciding to lay down. It was only midnight, a time of day where the sky was the darkest and in Beach City there was never any stars outside during the winter. The only thing winter brings to the east coast is the expectations of spring. Jasper loved spring and the summer, being outside during the day and wasting her time at the beach. She was originally from Hawaii, spent most of her years participating in sports and competitions. Nothing really changed when she arrived in Beach Coast except the winter.

She falls asleep thinking about it. Not because she is particularly tired but because she is exhausted mentally. Rushing to finish classes, trying to deal with her management position at her job, and she just wishes she could relax without thinking about any of those things. She was constantly going and did not know when to stop. Even in her dreams her mind felt the racing thoughts and stress she was feeling. Often having dreams of being trapped in her school in the middle of tests, or in her bar during rush hour. This dream was different.

In this dream she was sitting on a bed covered in black silk sheets and deep red rose petals. Her clothing had changed from the sweatpants and shirt to a pink, lace teddy that hung low on her chest and high against her thighs. She was alone, trapped in a nearly empty room which was only illuminated by candles. And she waits, looking out into the darkness until a figure appears farther away. "Hello?" She tries to speak but something keeps her from doing so. When she tries to stand up she finds herself unable to move as well.

The figure comes closer and Jasper watches them come into view. It was Pearl. At first Jasper is curious why she is dreaming about the woman, but her sudden interest in her made it more and more evident why. She comes closer and Jasper stares at her; the way her blue eyes glow in the darkness and the coolness of her skin when Pearl touches her. She puts one knee on the bed next to Jasper's outer thigh and follows with her other knee until she is sitting above Jasper. Dream Pearl stares down at her, pressing a hand softly against her chin and forcing her to turn her head to the side with a quick tug. In seconds Jasper can feel the intense pain in her neck.


	3. Chapter 3

"I must have slept wrong." Jasper informs Peridot as she rubs the palm of her hand against her neck. Ever since she had woken up the numbness and ache had been keeping her from sitting up comfortably to get her work done. However, it was not just the pain, but also the restless sleep and strange dream which felt so realistic to her. It created a longing feeling inside of her, as if she had known this woman from somewhere and they were made for one another.

"I can give you something for that if you want."

"I don't think I trust the girl who blew up her kitchen twice in a month to give me pain killers."

"Hey! I may have blown up the occasional stove or two in my life, but it doesn't mean I'm incapable of grabbing a bottle of aspirin and handing it to you."

"I'm fine. I'll be fine." She groans, turning on her bed to look over to Peridot. "Why are you here again?"

"You asked me to come over and fix your television."

"Right. I remember." Jasper is bored, absolutely bored out of her mind and she does not like it. There was a rain storm outside and it has left her unable to go running—not to mention that pain keeping her from sitting up straight—on top of that her television was not working so she had to get Peridot to fix it, and the rain knocked out her internet connection, so she couldn't do homework even if she tried. "Are you done?"

"Nope."

"Hm…"

"You don't do well with inactivity, do you?"

"I don't like being bored."

"Don't you have books to read? Notes to study?"

"My neck hurts too much, and I'm stuck on this stupid phone game you got me to play."

"Can you at least be quiet?" She huffs, shocking her finger as she tries to configure the wires. "I'll be back in a second, I'm going to grab my gloves." Jasper watches Peridot get up from the floor, leave the bedroom and she can hear her front door open and shut.

Peridot heads next door to her apartment and is suddenly startled by a woman who grabs her arm which nearly sends her into a panic. When she turns to see the woman, she notices who it is immediately, glancing over her clothes which were soaked by the storm. "What on earth do you think you're doing here, Pearl?"

"I walked." She replies faintly, her blue eyes staring at Peridot.

"You know you can't come here during the day; Jasper lives next door and I've already convinced her I don't know who you are."

"…I know." She stays motionless, her voice void of any emotions and her clothes dripping wet from the rain. "I came here to see you."

Peridot rolls her eyes, walking to her front door and opening it. "Sure you did. You might as well come inside if you came all this way."

She follows Peridot into her apartment, standing in the doorway and looking around the place before coming inside. She has been to this specific apartment many times in her life but the biggest concern for her was the person living next door. It was because ever since Pearl has met Jasper, something has bothered her about the woman. She could not place what it was, but it impacted her more than it most likely should. She spent most of her time going through her life and trying—but failing—to forget the past and now that Jasper has come into her life, it was all she could think about. However, to understand what she meant was to understand parts of Pearl's life that she refused to share with anyone.

Pearl shuts the door behind her once she feels comfortable enough to walk further into the living room, she watches Peridot walk into her bathroom and quickly come out with towels. "I'm fine."

"You might be fine, but you are not getting my floors wet." She hands Pearl the towels and she hesitantly accepts them. "Now, what exactly did you want with me?"

"Well…I just." She starts to speak and stops herself. Explaining her feelings or telling people what she needed bothered her in a way she could not quite understand.

"Are you hungry?"

She nods hesitantly.

"You have to stop this once a month thing."

"Science shows—"

"As much as I love science, I don't care what it shows right now. I'm texting Amethyst." She takes her phone from her pocket, sending a text to invite the woman over to her place to hopefully talk some sense into Pearl.

"Amethyst wouldn't yell at me. She's just concerned like everyone always is, but I'm fine. So, if you are not free now I could come back later."

"I'm just finishing something at Jasper's place. Give me ten minutes and while I'm gone, please change into dry clothes. Take anything you want for my room to wear."

Peridot leaves the living room to head into her bedroom, grabbing her gloves and a bottle of pain medication before heading back over to Jasper's. The situation with Jasper was not something Peridot could properly explain because Pearl was never honest. Jasper had absolutely nothing to do with Pearl's decision to move out on her own or her drastic change in personality over the past ten years but Jasper trying to come into her life was causing Pearl a lot of stress. Peridot can only assume it has something to do with Steven's mother but even that was complicated. It was why she had to lie to Jasper about even knowing Pearl because of who they really were.

When Peridot arrives back she hands Jasper the bottle and has her take a few pills before continuing to fix the television. With the proper gloves she doesn't electrocute her hands and is able to fix it, but the cable box is still out from the storm. That was not something Peridot herself could fix.

"Did you want me to make you lunch?" Jasper asks her, interrupting Peridot's internal swearing at the television.

"…Why does that sounds so suspicious? You usually kick me out after a few minutes."

She shrugs, "feeling generous I guess. What do you like?" She asks as she climbs out of her bed, stretching her arms up as she walks out of her bedroom. The pain in her neck had begun to subside thanks to the medication but the stiffness was still there.

"I can't stay for long…I have some company." Peridot admits as she follows Jasper into the living room with her tool box.

"You have friends?" Peridot rolls her eyes at the comment. "How about I make food and let you know when it is done?"

"I might take a nap…How about dinner instead? Text me when you're done, and I'll come back over because my friends should be gone by then."

"Okay…Thank you by the way."

"You're welcome. I'll see you tonight."

Peridot wants nothing more to go back to her apartment to make sure Pearl has not left because she has a habit of coming and going without warning anyone. But, when she enters her apartment Pearl is wearing dry clothes—thankfully—and sitting on her couch while staring at the blank television screen. She puts her toolbox down on the living room table and sits down next to her. "Do you want the remote or?"

"No, no. I'm fine. Amethyst is in your room by the way."

"What? Why is she in my room?"

"She said she had a present for you and put it in your room for you to open when you had a moment. I'm assuming it is something inappropriate, but it is like her to do something such as that."

Peridot turns towards the hallway when she hears her bedroom door open and Amethyst come from it. Unlike Pearl who was soaked from the rain, Amethyst's clothes had only been partially damp, and it must have been from her running over to Peridot's apartment rather quickly. She reminded Peridot a lot of Jasper due to the long, thick hair and the similar light coloring. Amethyst had once put purple in her hair which faded into this pale lavender color which refused to leave. They also were both incredibly stubborn, into sports, and deep down were nice and kind-hearted although they might not show it on the outside. Outside of their height being a huge difference, another was that Amethyst learned how to let things go and didn't let the unexplainable bother her anymore.

Amethyst comes overs to the couch, sitting down on the coffee table in front of Pearl and Peridot. "So, what am I yelling at Pearl about?"

"She has been doing this thing for the past few months where she decided—" Peridot gets cut off quickly by Pearl.

"It has been backed by science!" Pearl interrupts.

"So she decided that it would be a good idea if she only ate once a month because—" She gets cut off again and groans.

"Woah, now. Do we need to have this conversation again?" Amethyst asks.

"I am fine. I have always been fine." Something inside of Pearl constantly makes her defensive against anything that may seem wrong to others. Once they start to scold her or pretend they know better than she does. She has been the one living this way for close to her entire life; not Amethyst or Peridot or anyone else who wanted to interfere in her personal life. She had gotten into countless arguments over the years because of this very thing and it was how she lost contact with people she once cared about.

"You are not fine. You look worse than the last time I saw you."

"Yes, that is what every person wants to hear."

"Pearl, please. You know you can't keep doing this to yourself. Ever since Rose died, you have been a mess and haven't been taking care of yourself the way you should be. I offered before to help you."

"And I appreciated the offer, I still appreciate the offer but I'm very decisive about what I want."

"Well, what you want isn't currently available. You have Peridot for now, but you need more than just her and a lot more than just once a month."

"Is that why you keep showing up around Jasper?" Peridot asks unexpected, keeping to her own thoughts while Amethyst and Pearl had been speaking. "Do you react to people a different way?"

"Whose Jasper?" Amethyst snorts, "oh wait! Isn't she that hot girl who Peridot totally gets off to when we're not around?" Amethyst stands up and moves to sit in between the women on the couch. She pats Peridot on the thigh.

"She's my next-door neighbor." Peridot rolls her eyes in response to Amethyst touching her and then moves over to make more room on the couch. "Jasper met Pearl like a week ago and has been asking me and everyone around town if they know who Pearl is because Jasper has a crush on her. Jasper does that though, meets strange women who are aloof and falls for them."

"I am not aloof." Pearl declares.

"Sure you aren't," Amethyst laughs. "And Pearl, are we reciprocating these emotions?"

"…No."

"You don't seem so sure to me."

Pearl does not want to talk about it and it is evident from the look on her face. She has always detested speaking about her personal life, her feelings for other people whether they romantic or other. But, for some reason whenever she is around both Amethyst and Peridot she feels as if she must explain herself. Luckily, there was nothing to explain at this point in time. Her attraction to Jasper was something she was still trying to figure out for herself.

"She's ignoring me, Peri." Amethyst frowns.

"Jasper's only been living next to me for a few months, so it isn't surprising that Pearl has never met her before now."

"And if you think about it, she kind of reminds you of Rose? Maybe that's what this is."

"What are you talking about?" Pearl interrupts.

"I mean, they look alike if you think about it." Amethyst shrugs.

"Well, I do not think about it. Can Peridot and I just be left alone? I would like to head back home before the rain stops and the sun is out."

"What's up with you and the sun? You know those myths about sunlight are fake, right? Is this a side effect of not eating?"

"Will you just leave?" Pearl huffs, standing up and heading back into Peridot's bedroom.

"What a shame; I made her mad."

"She's been agitated lately. Something is seriously bothering her, and she won't tell anyone what it is."

"You think Garnet knows? They haven't really been on speaking terms in the past few weeks but maybe she knows something?" She scratches her head as she stands up to leave. "I'll go talk to her and come back tonight. And before I forget, do not open the box in your room until I come back. That is for you and I, and I want to see your face when you open it." She winks, "I'll see you later."

Peridot waits until Amethyst leaves the apartment before she stands up and heads back into her bedroom. Pearl is lying on the bed, staring up at the ceiling with her eyes closed. "She left."

"I heard the door." Pearl sighs, covering her face with her hands. She knows she has made it hard on everyone for these past few years, but she was so tired of the way she was now. Not just how she portrayed herself around others, but the simple fact of who and what she was often exhausted her. She did not want to share her burdens with others because they also were affected by the same event she was. She knew Peridot was one of the few people who she could speak with because she was not around at this time. Peridot came into her life after Rose's death and became a sort of confidant. She was the one who held all her secrets and helped her the most.

"I want you to tell me something before we start…" Peridot speaks as she shuts her door and then comes to sit down on her bed.

"Whatever it is I'm sure it is going to invade my personal life."

"What's with Jasper? I do not understand your problem with her." Peridot has been curious for the past week about Pearl's sudden interest with the woman. Was there a connection between them? Did it happen to do with some sort of aura Jasper produced? There was so much Peridot could never understand because she was merely human.

"Well, it is personal."

"Which we've been over."

"And I do not like to share my personal life with just anyone."

"You don't share it with anyone."

"It's not important."

"Does it have to do with Rose like we were saying?"

Pearl drops her hands and opens her eyes, slowly turning to Peridot. "I don't know. I would be frightened to bring someone like that woman into my life with hopes she would understand what I am."

"You say it as if your entire life is such a tragedy and being a vampire is such a burden."

"Not my entire life." She chuckles.

"I just want you to be happy. It sucks seeing everyone around me so miserable all of the damn time." Peridot huffs as she lays down. "At least ask Jasper for her phone number?"

"I don't have a phone."

"I will buy you a cell phone just for this."

"And what if she is human? I do not want to live my life pining for another human."

"We'll figure it out before you get to the pining level, okay?"

Pearl nods.

"Good."

Pearl sits up on the bed and Peridot stares at her, "pick a wrist."

Peridot lifts her hands in front of her face, contemplating which before handing Pearl her left cautiously. As many time as they have done this in the past—with the scarring still on Peridot's wrists as proof—she always felt a bit of apprehension in this method.

"Now breathe…It will only hurt for a second." She speaks, and within moments Peridot can feel teeth piercing her skin.


	4. Chapter 4

"You are out of your mind, Amethyst." Pearl speaks from the kitchen table as she watches Peridot cooking breakfast.. Even if she does not need to eat, she still finds pleasure in watching others cook or cooking herself. "Why don't you tell Jasper that Peridot's a sorceress while you're at it? Not to mention she works with at least three people who are not human. Why don't we just expose the entire community of supernatural creatures and give her their address?"

"Why are you being so dramatic, P? It was a simple question." Amethyst rolls her eyes.

"I am not going to tell a stranger that I am a vampire."

"You told me, and I was a stranger once."

"Me too." Peridot chimes in.

Pearl sighs, "you both understand what I mean."

"Look, if she doesn't understand we can solve that problem after, but if you like her and she obviously likes you, you should tell her." Amethyst comes over to sit at the table. "It's super easy, I'll practice with you."

"Pass." Pearl stands up from her seat and walks into the living room. "How was your dinner last night?"

Peridot blinks, "it was fine?" She looks over to Amethyst and mouths something to her which the woman shrugs in response.

"You know that secret whisper thing doesn't work with me, right?"

Amethyst groans, "We're worried about you, everyone is worried about you. You have completely changed since Rose and are more willing to trudge around feeling sorry for yourself instead of doing something to feel better."

"I'm leaving."

"Pearl, come on. We aren't saying you need to get over it, we just think that you need to take some kinda step to start moving on. Even if it is as simple as going on a date."

"You two forget that I'm not exactly normal. I can't just be in a relationship with anyone. Rose was at least immortal for an extent of her life…Being with some human sounds awful. I would have to constantly worry about their well being. What happened with Rose was not something anyone expected happening and so unless Jasper ends up being some immortal, it seems hopeless."

"Could you at least ask her on a date?" Amethyst rolls her eyes. She goes through this conversation with Pearl every few months, because Pearl is hellbent on being alone for the rest of her life and Amethyst just wants her to be happy. "Like, Rose meant a lot to you and I get it because she meant a lot to me, too. But, she would have wanted you to live your life."

"I would do it if you could explain how I tell someone I'm a vampire without scaring them away."

"You don't. You tell her you're immortal and leave it at then until she asks further." Peridot speaks as she picks up her cellphone from the table. "Immortals aren't uncommon, so I wouldn't be surprised if she knew someone already who was." She starts scrolling through her phone until she finds Jasper's phone number, because even though they live next door to each other it was an easier way for the both to communicate sometimes.

"What are you doing?" Pearl asks as she comes closer to the table, glancing over at Peridot's cellphone and the message she was telling her. "Don't text her!" She shrieks, visibly panicking over the events unraveling.

"Too late." She presses send.

"What on earth did you send her?"

Peridot sets her phone down and picks up a piece of toast from her plate. "That I lied about not knowing you."

"Great. She's going to think I am deranged." She sits down at the table, dropping her face into her arms on the table.

"Pearl, you walk around half-naked around the city and say really cryptic things to people. The cops picked you up because they thought you were an escapee from the hospital." Amethyst replies to her.

"That is not what happened, and you know it." She huffs, hearing the vibrations from Peridot's cellphone. "What did she say?"

Peridot picks up her cellphone with a sigh, skimming through the two messages that Jasper has sent. "I told her you were at my place and she said she is coming over."

"Let's face it, P. Someone actually likes you even with your weird quirks and you know, the blood sucking thing." Amethyst shrugs.

"Amethyst, be quiet. Pearl, come outside with me."

"This is awful." Pearl groans. "Absolutely awful. She is going to think I am some sort of freak and imagine when she finds out that I am a vampire. It is going to be even worse."

"You done?"

Pearl is sure that within the short amount of time she has known Peridot, she has easily become use to how eccentric or overly dramatic she may become when the smallest things impact her life. Peridot has been there just as much as Amethyst and Garnet have been, but it does not make it any easier for her to accept others into her life. Jasper was different, and Pearl cannot place her finger on what it was. Sure, there was that slight appearance to the woman she spent the past five thousand years with but there was more to it than just appearances. Jasper tried to help her when they first met, and she cared about her well being even though she did not have to. Pearl is worried she is trying to compare Jasper to the woman she loved for years as an explanation for her sudden interest in her. She feels betrayed by her own feelings, because she hasn't had feelings for anyone but Rose in her entire life.

It was too hard for her to explain to anyone, because no one had been alive as long as she has. She could not just change her feelings for this woman after loving her for thousands of years, and then move onto someone new as if Rose never existed in the first place. Maybe she was expecting too much of herself; worried about how others would never be able to take her place, or worse, make Pearl forget about her past lover.

Jasper was already outside when Peridot brought Pearl out onto the porch. She immediately retreats, and Peridot grabs onto her arm to keep her outside. "The sun is out, I don't want to burn." She was simply making excuses for this time.

"No, it is not. It's also starting to rain again so you will be fine outside for a few minutes." Peridot says to her in a hushed voice. Peridot looks in front of her to Jasper who is standing outside her apartment door. "Don't make me get Amethyst out here."

"Fine."

Peridot lets go of Pearl and heads back inside, closing the door behind her and shutting her window shades as she makes it into the kitchen.

"Peridot didn't really explain why she lied about not knowing you." Jasper speaks to her as she walks down the porch to Peridot's apartment entrance.

"…I told her to." Pearl does not want to look at Jasper because she knows she will embarrass herself somehow. "…It is too hard to explain why."

"I know it's obvious that I like you, but I don't want you to think it's for the wrong reason. I've seen you around town for a few weeks now, and you're interesting but there's something about you that is really familiar, and I can't figure out what."

Pearl blinks, finding herself completely confused. "I know exactly what you mean." She crosses her arms and looks out towards the parking lot, watching the light rain beginning to cover the windshields of the cars. "I know this town is filled with unexplained activity. I was here when the ocean inexplicably vanished and when there were those bizarre wolf attacks. What I'm trying to say is…I'm one of those inexplicable things. There are things I just cannot bare to tell you about myself…"

"Are you gay?" Jasper stops her, and Pearl raises an eyebrow.

"Well, of course I am."

"Do you have any of your own children?"

"Well, no."

"And are you in a relationship?"

"Not currently?" Pearl looks at her this time because she is not sure what the point of the questions were.

"I was just making sure." Jasper smirks.

"As I was saying, there are some things about myself that I cannot explain or tell you. So, what I am about to say should sum up almost everything that makes you question why I act the way I do."

"You're not human." Jasper says it for her and Pearl nods carefully. "I've been thinking about it for a while. Not having the sensation to feel physically was the only thing that made sense to me when I would see you out barefoot in the cold."

"I can feel…But there are limits to what I can feel." Pearl sighs. "I've been alive for a very long time, and you are the first person in ten years that has not completely panicked when I told them the truth." Pearl quickly deduces something is wrong. Was Jasper immortal? Did she have some abilities that Pearl was unaware of?

"There are three things in my life that I know." Jasper takes a step closer to Pearl. "The first is that I was adopted by magic users, so magic and immortality have never been things that keep me away. The second is that I have always been drawn to magic and the supernatural and vice versa…Hence, living next door to a witch."

"You know Peridot is a sorceress?"

Jasper nods. "A bad one, but yes. The third thing I know is that for some …inexplicable," she teases Pearl by using that word, "reason I am completely drawn to you."

"It is because of what I am." She says solemnly. Vampires had a way of drawing people to them with love and lust, Pearl was sure that was the connection because she does not want to accept any other reasoning.

"I don't think that is the reason. I would be glad to discuss this more over lunch."

If she could blush, her face would be bright red at this point. "I don't need to eat, but if wine is involved I would gladly be willing to discuss this more."

"I can arrange wine. I have work, but you'll be awake when I'm done at work. You can stop by."

"…O-okay." She clears her throat. "I'll…see you at midnight." She does not give Jasper a chance to respond because she quickly turns, opening the door back to Peridot's apartment and nearly slamming into the door because she cannot seem to open it fast enough. She feels like a teenager again, feeling stupid romantic emotions for girls she barely know. When she finally gets into the apartment, she slams the door behind her and makes her way to the couch before laying down on here it with a groan. "Why did I let you talk me into this?" She is speaking to Peridot who had left the room the second Pearl started whining, while partly blaming herself for the whole ordeal.

"I see it went well." Amethyst snorts.

"It went fine." Pearl groans. "She asked me out for dinner, told me she is a magnet for magic, so she assumed I was not human, told me she knows Peridot is a witch, and then I think she was flirting with me?" She is beyond flustered at this point.

"Woah, she knows Peridot is a sorceress?"

"A bad one, but yes." She repeats what Jasper had said and hears Peridot yell at her from the other one. "But, that is the least of my concerns right now. I haven't gone on a date in over five thousand years."

"I'll come over and help you pick out something hot to wear."

"I should just cancel. I should just leave town and never return."

"Dude, you're going to be fine. I haven't seen you this worked up over something since...Well, since you met Jasper honestly. You've got it bad for her."

"I'm going home." Pearl exclaims as she sits up on the couch. "If you want to come over and help me pick out an outfit, I would appreciate it, but if you don't have anything constructive to say..." She grabs her shoes by the coffee table and slides them onto her feet.

"Yeah, I really don't. Mostly sex jokes are on my brain."

"Goodbye." Pearl double checks the window to make sure Jasper is gone before leaving out the front door.


End file.
